Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Position Lessened by Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 27.7% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 202,452 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 77,498 shares during the quarter. Ligand Pharmaceuticals accounts for 3.8% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 4th largest holding. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC’s holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals were worth $38,278,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the third quarter worth about $26,000. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 86.3% during the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 149 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. increased its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 85.8% during the third quarter. Richardson Financial Services Inc. now owns 210 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the fourth quarter valued at about $43,000. Finally, First Horizon Corp bought a new stake in Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the third quarter valued at about $47,000. 91.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

Shares of LGND stock opened at $226.87 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 21.98, a current ratio of 22.23 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business has a 50 day moving average of $204.29 and a two-hundred day moving average of $197.43. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $98.89 and a 52 week high of $238.31. The company has a market cap of $4.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.91, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 1.14.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 26th. The biotechnology company reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.46 by $0.56. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a return on equity of 13.86% and a net margin of 46.42%.The company had revenue of $59.67 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.59 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.27 earnings per share. Ligand Pharmaceuticals’s quarterly revenue was up 39.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.000-9.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 5.47 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

LGND has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, March 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $276.00 to $282.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Bank of America initiated coverage on Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $244.00 price objective for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, HC Wainwright boosted their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $239.00 to $243.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $247.29.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, Director Stephen L. Sabba sold 2,034 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $201.50, for a total value of $409,851.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 33,793 shares in the company, valued at $6,809,289.50. The trade was a 5.68% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Andrew Reardon sold 5,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $206.35, for a total value of $1,031,750.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 36,869 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,607,918.15. The trade was a 11.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 30,915 shares of company stock valued at $6,385,917. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals, Inc is a biopharmaceutical company that acquires, develops and out-licenses proprietary technologies designed to help pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies discover and develop novel medicines. Operating primarily through its research services and royalty-generating businesses, Ligand focuses on building a diversified portfolio of technology platforms and partnering with industry leaders to advance therapeutic candidates across multiple disease areas.

The company’s product offerings center around several core platforms.